The Alberta government’s strategy for addressing an impending epidemic of dementia was finally released Tuesday, featuring plans to better educate the public about the illness and improve the primary care system’s ability to manage patients.

However, at least one opposition critic called the long-awaited report a huge disappointment, noting the strategy contains no new funding commitments or cost projections, no timelines for implementing the plan and no targets for how many dementia-care beds the province will need.

“I think they are just looking for a headline to make people think they are doing something when they are not,” Alberta Party MLA Greg Clark said. “At the very best, it’s a plan to make a plan. It really lets people down who were counting on new funding.”

Work on the strategy began in the fall of 2014, and the government received a draft outline in 2015. Clark has been pushing the province since last spring to deliver the final plan, but said the document unveiled Tuesday wasn’t worth the wait.

The Alberta government’s response seems particularly weak when compared with that of Ontario, which earlier this year announced $100 million towards its dementia strategy along with extra funds for respite care, he said.

Liberal MLA David Swann characterized the strategy as a “high-level” plan that includes all the right words but falls short on timeline and funding details. He said significant money will be needed to deal with growing cases of dementia as the baby boomers age.

Dramatic increase

More than 42,000 Albertans are currently living with a diagnosis of dementia, but that number could more than triple to 155,000 within 30 years if nothing is done, the strategy says.

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common type of dementia, accounting for about 60 per cent of the cases.

Statistics from a decade ago show dementia accounted for $650 million in direct health care costs to Alberta, but the burden jumped to $1.2 billion when costs for social supports and employment impacts were added.

Health Minister Sarah Hoffman said the government took its time with the strategy to ensure it properly addressed dementia “as a societal issue.”

She said she questioned if the strategy should be more specific, but ultimately agreed it was better to have a broad approach.

“We wanted a framework that would be a guiding document for years to come,” Hoffman said.

The strategy calls for improvements to Alberta’s primary care system, so that family doctors and associated health teams can better diagnose dementia at an early stage, then manage each patient’s care as the disease progresses.

The strategy also recommends Alberta improve public awareness of dementia, which can produce several benefits. This includes reducing stigma so that communities are more open to those with disease, and helping Albertans reduce risks to brain health through better diet and exercise, regular socializing and avoiding smoking and head injuries.

• Ensure everyone diagnosed with dementia has someone who can coordinate their care.

• Facilitate faster access to diagnostic tests for those with dementia symptoms.

• Develop a research framework to make Alberta a leader in dementia care innovations.

Alberta’s last dementia strategy was released in 2002.

Hoffman said her government has already spent nearly $7 million on initiatives toward the strategy, including about $1.95 million for the First Link program that connects patients and caregivers with support immediately after a diagnosis.

The United Conservative Party did not have a critic available for comment Tuesday. A spokeswoman for the caucus said MLAs will take time to review the document before offering a response.

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